The weekend and beyond

This will be a busy weekend for travelers in the Washington area, and then as the work week resumes, getting around gets even more challenging because of the nuclear security summit.

Cherry Blossom Festival
The Capital Weather Gang gives us a good weekend for sightseeing. The areas around the Mall and the Tidal Basin remain very crowded, particularly along Independence, Constitution and Maine avenues, and along 14th and 15th streets.

Saturday: The Cherry Blossom Parade on Constitution Avenue NW begins at 10 a.m. and concludes about noon. The route is Seventh Street to 17th Street. Watch for detours and delays on these Metrobus routes during the parade hours: 5A, 13, 32, 34, 36, 52, 54, 64, 70, 80, P6, S2, S4 and V8. Service should be back to normal by about 2 p.m.

Sunday: The Cherry Blossom 10-Mile Run begins at 7:45 a.m. at 15th Street and Jefferson Drive SW, the Washington Monument grounds, which also is the finish. The route includes the Tidal Basin and Hains Point areas as well as Independence Avenue, the Memorial Bridge and Rock Creek Parkway past the Kennedy Center. Metrorail will open at 5 a.m.

Metrorail's weekend
There's no track work scheduled for this weekend because of the blossom festival. The trains have been very crowded throughout the day. Metro set several ridership records this week. However, that was partly because of games at Nationals Park, and the team is now on the road until April 16.

Kenilworth Avenue (295)
The District Department of Transportation plans to close the right lanes in each direction on Kenilworth Avenue (295) at Burroughs Avenue from 9 p.m. Friday through 10 a.m. Saturday.

Traffic delays and backups are very likely. There may be a good alternative if you're trying to reach the Capital Beltway and beyond:
-- I-395 to 50 east (New York Avenue)
-- Whitney Young Memorial Bridge/East Capitol Street/Central Avenue
-- Sousa Bridge/Pennsylvania Avenue SE

After this weekend, two more weekend ramp closings will be needed to complete the utility relocation. The Braddock Road westbound ramp to the inner loop (I-495 north) is scheduled to close from 9:30 p.m. Friday, April 16, through 5 a.m. Monday, April 19. The ramp from the inner loop to Braddock Road westbound is scheduled to close from 9:30 p.m. Friday, April 23, through 5 a.m. Monday, April 26.

George Mason Drive
From 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday, South George Mason Drive will be reduced to one lane in each direction near its intersection with South Buchanan Street in Arlington County for repair work. Traffic congestion is very likely, and it would be best to avoid the area.

I-95 widening
Starting Sunday, the Virginia Department of Transportation plans to close several lanes on I-95 north overnights between Route 1 and the Fairfax County Parkway for joint repair and paving. This paving project is scheduled to last until mid-June.

Sunday through Thursday nights each week, several lanes will be closed from 9 p.m. until 5 a.m. After 10:30 each night, HOV reversible lanes could be used as an alternative to bypass the work zone.

Nuclear summit
Monday and Tuesday will be terrific days to telecommute if your office is in downtown Washington. The nuclear security summit will draw 40 world leaders to the Washington Convention Center.

Metrorail extension
Throughout the coming week, lanes will close overnight on Route 7 in Tysons Corner. Workers will be restoring pavement and curbing in areas where utility relocations have occurred to prepare for construction of the Dulles Metrorail line. Most of the lane closings will take place between 9:30 p.m. and 5 a.m.

From Dr. Gridlock: Whether you're a driver, transit rider, biker or walker, expect additional delays on Monday and Tuesday in DC because of the nuke summit. This could happen even if you're far from the Mount Vernon Square area.

For example, some of the bus routes passing through the Mount Vernon Square area originate in the suburbs. The later we get in the Monday and Tuesday rush hours, the more likely we'll have delays on those lines extending out into the burbs.

On Metrorail, all lines could be affected -- all the way along the lines. Above, mmad2 asks about the Red Line. Unlike the Yellow and Green lines, it doesn't go through Mount Vernon Square. But some people who normally would drive downtown to work may decide to take the train that day. That means more crowding around the train doors. That means the trains will remain at the platforms longer than they are supposed to. That means delays up and down the lines.

Plus, as so many of you know, the more crowded the trains are, the more likely you are to let one or two go by before you try to crowd aboard.